Guilty plea in attempted assault case

A man arrested on suspicion of sexually assaulting his stepdaughter pleaded guilty to attempted sexual assault in District Court on Tuesday.

The 37-year-old man from Steamboat Springs was arrested May 12 on charges of sexually assaulting his teenage stepdaughter. Steamboat Springs police Detective Bob DelValle said the assault and an attempted assault happened more then a year ago. Police began investigating the case after receiving a report in December from the Routt County Department of Human Services.

The man was facing one count of sexual assault on a child and one count of criminal attempt of sexual assault on a child, according to court documents. In a plea agreement, those charges were dismissed and the man pleaded guilty to criminal attempt of sexual assault on a victim 14 years old or younger, a Class 5 felony.

The man has been held at Routt County Jail on a $20,000 bond because a reduction plea was denied in May.

The man will be sentenced at 3 p.m. Aug. 16 in District Court.

Public Defender Trevor McFee said that a Class 5 felony could carry a potential prison sentence of three years and a mandatory two-year parole.